Especially since the introduction of VCRs (video cassette recorders), so-called “time-shifting” of audio/visual programs by recording them from radio frequency (RF) transmissions over the air, from a satellite or from a RF cable network for later playback has become commonplace. This also includes game events in which the sights and sounds of game play are transmitted as the video and audio portions of an audio/visual program. Further, a commonplace practice to conveying scores, official timekeeping and statistics related to the play of a game event has been to devote subparts of the visual portion of the audio/visual program to displaying such information (e.g., overlays and/or cutaways), and/or to dub voice commentary about such information into the audio portion of the audio/visual program.
As a result of this audio and/or visual embedding of scores, official timekeeping and statistics in one or both of the audio and visual portions of an audio/visual program of a game event, synchronization of the presentation of such information alongside the presentation of the sights and sounds of game play is easily maintained. Specifically, the presentation of the scores resulting from every play that occurs (e.g., goals, hits, balls, runs, outs, etc.) remains properly synchronized with the presentation of the sights and sounds of those actions of the game play, itself. This has also enabled such synchronization to be maintained, even where presentation of an audio/visual program of a game is time-shifted such that it occurs days or weeks after having been recorded from an RF transmission.
With the advent of streaming of audio/visual programs via the Internet to computer systems and/or so-called “smart televisions” has become commonplace, there is a desire to take advantage of various abilities of some of these computing devices to visually split apart the presentation of scores, official timekeeping and statistics of a game event from the visual presentation of the sights of game play. Specifically, there is a desire to present the sights of game play with fewer overlays and/or cutaways showing such other information so as to “unclutter” the presentation of the sights of the game play by visually presenting scores, official timekeeping and statistics in areas of a display of such computing devices that are separate from an area of the display on which the visual portion of the audio/visual program is presented.
However, typical practice in the streaming of audio/visual programs via a network, including the Internet, entails use of data formats for the audio and/or visual portions that do not make allowance for inclusion of or synchronization with other types of data, unless that data is embedded in the audio or visual portions in the same manner as in the aforementioned RF transmissions. As a result, such other data as the scores, official timekeeping and statistics related to play of a game event must be separately transmitted, which invites the possibility that their presentation may not be synchronized with the presentation of the audio/visual program. Thus, for example, the presentation of a change in score as a result of a play in the game event may occur before presentation of the play that lead to that change in score in the audio/visual program.
The separate transmission of scores and statistics also renders time-shifted presentations of a game event difficult. A smart television or other computing device, upon contacting a server storing scores and statistics of a game event to obtain such information for presentation, will be provided with the final score and finalized statistics. Thus, while the audio/visual program conveying the sights and sounds of game play is presented hours, days or weeks after the game event has occurred, the desire of a person seeking to experience the play of that game event as it occurred will be ruined by the presentation of scores and statistics informing them of the final outcome. It is with respect to these and other considerations that the techniques described herein are needed.